I'll make a man out of you
by SherlockedCastiel
Summary: After the unthinkable happens on selection day of the Quarter Quell, Mulan is forced to accept her fate and prove what women can do.
1. Chapter 1

I awoke to the sound of drums outside my bedroom. It is selection today, so 12 drum beats echoed through the homes of my neighbourhood, as they would in every village for miles. Today would be the day people would find out about the Quarter Quell, and exactly what it would mean.  
My family had 1 man in the age of allowance, my brother. He was the same age as men but had won his games 3 years ago. My father has won his around 45 years ago. He had been my brother's inspiration for volunteering, but he had not been the same since. His scars from the game were mental whilst I only ever saw my father's physical scars. He walked with a limp, an injury he had obtained from his last fight in the arena. I'd seen the footage. He cut the boy's throat in a single swipe of the blade.  
I put on my cotton dress and wound a long piece of cloth around my waist. I glanced at the mirror, but didn't study my face. I never liked the look of my features which included a snub nose, thick eyebrows, pale lips and simply a handful of freckles scattered lightly across my nose and cheeks. I looked more like my father and my brother than my delicate mother, and I suppose I acted like it too.  
The Quarter Quell had everybody on edge. It wasn't like my family could be selected, we were either female, and therefore considered too weak to fight and be worthy of achieving the honour winning the Hunger Games, or we had already won. But every year we were always affected. Friends being taken away and never returning, children in the streets crying because they'd lost their friend. Parents staying behind closed doors. The village slowly becoming smaller and smaller out of the fear their family would be selected. Of course the age changed a long time ago. Children used to be the ones to fight, but the Capitol believed this made it too easy. Adults were stronger, and so they created better entertainment for the people so anyone up to 65 can be selected now. Rarely anyone of that age is selected though, mostly young men volunteer.  
I head immediately to my brothers room to see if he's awake but as I walk down the corridor I hear the too familiar screams that mostly occur at night. I burst into his room and I find him on the floor, his heads in his hands and he's crying and screaming.  
"Kuai!" I exclaim and fall at his side. "Kuai listen to me it's not real! Please stop! It's over! You're safe!" I gently attempt to touch his arm to reassure him but he jolts in alarm and his elbow connects with the bottom of my eye and cheek. I yell in pain and Kuai stops and realised what he had done.  
"Mulan! Oh forgive me. I thought-" He cuts off, unable to continue.  
"It's fine I'm just glad you're okay." He grips my arm and looks at my eye just as my mother and father enter the room.  
"Oh Kuai what happened?"  
"It was an accident mother, father I swear!" Kaui tries to explain desperately. My father nods. He understands. My mother simply fusses over my face.  
"We need to go the square. Today is the day boy. We find out who will follow in our footsteps"  
"Yes father." Kaui rises and we leave his bedroom to let him get ready. It's always a hard day for him, he knows what he will experience. He and my father will put on their armour, a tradition in our village on selection day. Every male eligible for the games will wear a suit of armour. We leave the house as a family and take our place near the back of the ceremony. The man with a strange, whiney voice and a beard takes his place and goes through the traditional story, everything that has happened in war and why we are here. I could recite this story backwards so I just look around the site until he starts to talk about the quarter Quell. This is when it will get interesting.  
"As all of you know, the Quarter Quell is always something unique. Something to show what the games could be. Last year was exciting, but this year it is special. For this year, the tributes will be selected from the previous victors of the Hunger Games."  
Silence rushes over the village square while everyone takes in the news. I hear a rustle as my fathers hold on my mother changes to support her. As I glance back I realise she looks like she is about to faint. My brother too.  
"Oh Kuai." I whisper. "Stop. They won't pick you. There are many victors. Your names in there once. Father you too. In this case the odds are in your favour."  
"I hope you are right Mulan." My father calmly replies.  
Suddenly a scream can be heard from the front of the stadium. A previous victor no doubt. There's a movement as he begins to run away. I recognise his face from many years ago, but his face is crying as he runs. People shout after him but it is too late. The gunshot pieces through the sky in a second and the screams silence. As does every person in the square.  
"We will know choose the names of the tribute that will represent village 9 this year." The man says as he walks over to the first bowl. "Li Shang" That's the name of the first man chosen. I can't believe it. He won last year. He doesn't seem surprised. He walks onto the stage and stands next to the small man. He holds his head up high. "Welcome, welcome. Back for more already, eh?" The man jokes. Shang simply looks down at him without saying a word. "Now for the next name" he moves on swiftly. The second piece of paper is selected. He leans into the microphone and the words ring through my mind. "Fa Kuai."  
My brother's legs seem to wobble as my mother hugs him immediately. My father hangs his head in pain most likely. I'm too shocked to move. Kuai begins to move forward, each step seemingly getting more difficult.  
"Kuai." I say. "Kuai! No!" He's almost at the stage now. I run to join him and several people gasp. "No! Please, you can't do this. He's done his part, he won his games. He's very sick!" I yell desperate for anybody to listen.  
"Silence girl! You should learn to hold your tongue. Especially in the presence of a man."  
"Please, he can't go"  
"Unless somebody volunteers he has no choice!"  
"I volunteer!" I yell quickly tears falling down my cheeks. "I volunteer as tribute!"  
The audience gasp again but the small bearded man just laughs. "Happy hunger games. And may the odds be ever in your favour." He says to the audience before he escorts the two tributes off. "Kuai!" I yell desperately one last time.

** So that's the first chapter, I hope it's not too obvious what's going to happen, I promise they'll be plot twists and stuff. It's clearly a bit of a strange crossover, but I got the idea and just had to try to write it. Please review and tell me if you liked or didn't like it. Any suggestions or changes would be much appreciated. I realise my spelling needs work, I do use spell check but it's not perfect. Feel free to follow, I should update pretty soon. Thanks for reading**


	2. Chapter 2

I struggle to breathe as mother and father come to join me at the front of the square. We have less than hour until Kuai is taken to the capitol and to say goodbye. That is not enough time. "Come Mulan, we must not waste time." My father says. We walk in silence to the room in which my brother is kept. When we enter he's just sat on the floor, staring blankly into space. His armour has been removed leaving him in a plain cotton shirt and trousers. His armour lies on the floor on the opposite side of the room. "Kuai?" My mother's small voice breaks the silence that surrounds us. He does not reply. "Kuai, we are so sorry." "We truly are Kaui. You don't deserve this. But you won once, and you can do it again." Kaui does not reply to father either. "I think the longer we stay the harder this will be. So we should say goodbye quickly." Kuai gives a hardly noticeable nod of the head and my father and father go to hug him. They join him on the ground and consume him in a hug, then they both simply say 'goodbye.' They begin to leave the room when father looks back "Remember what I taught you Kuai. My little Ping." 'Ping' was a nickname my brother gained from his first birthday. It was his first word, and it was all he said for several days. My parents called everything Ping just to please him as he loved the word. Mother was Ping. Father was Ping. Teddy was Ping. Kuai was Ping. Until finally he grew bored of the word, and eventually Kuai was the only thing called Ping left. I hadn't heard father call him that in a long time. It was nice, a reminder of a happier, more simple time. "Mulan?" My mother whispered, but I shook my head. "I will stay with him." I simply say, and with one last look at Kuai they leave. He doesn't look up, or move he just keeps staring at the wall. "Oh Kuai." I mutter, my brain going crazy. He can't survive this. There's no way he'll even make it past the beginning blood-bath. He's not weak but he'll panic. He's in too much pain. I look around the room, desperate for any idea I can think of. Maybe if they saw what the hunger games had done to him, maybe if they knew… No. They were ruthless. They would allow him to die. Fortunately that's not a trait I share. I look at the small mirror at the side of the room and once again examine my face. I see my hair falling long behind my back. I look at Kuai, his muscular frame he once had in the hunger games is gone due to his time spent in bed or in the house, too afraid to leave the room. Not so different from mine. I rush over to the draw on the other side of the room. This is a study…and studies have…I reach into a draw and pull out what I was looking for. Letter opening knives. Every rich house has one. I I grip my hair into a pony tail and cut it all off below the shoulder. I take a hair band from my slender wrist and twist my hair up into a ponytail, as similar to Kuai's as I can make it. I need to look masculine. I begin to strap on Kuai's armour, almost without thinking. I've helped father put on his enough times now. Once it's on I take one last look in the mirror at myself and realise what I'm about to do. My eyes flicker over to Kuai, looking weak on the floor, his own eyes still fixated on the wall opposite. In leave him be. A peacekeeper looks at me from down the corridor, then begins to march forward. "Who are you?" he demands. "My name is Ping." My deepened voice speaks. "And I volunteer as tribute." Yep. Second chapter. Please review and stuff. Sorry about the last chapters layout. Thanks for reading :3 


	3. Chapter 3

State your name." The man says. "My name is Ping." "Well Ping. You are in a great deal of luck. District 1 and 2 both have volunteers that have not won previous games. Apparently their training was taken to the limit and another year would have affected them. You have been granted the permission to volunteer in this Quarter Quell. Good luck Ping." He spits out my name as if it tastes bad in his mouth. "And may the odds be ever in your favour." The peacekeeper takes my arm and pulls me along to the room my brother is in. We enter and my brother hasn't moved. "Kuai. You may leave. Go home to your family." Kuai's lip quivers as he glances up. I hope he does not recognise me. "Leave." The peacekeeper repeats. Kuai stands and looks at me. I almost see him realise what's happening. Alarm rises through his face. "I wish to talk to the volunteer alone." Kuai mumbles. The peacekeeper looks at us both. "You have 3 minutes." Then the door slams. "Mulan! What are you doing? I have to tell them ri-" he starts to leave but I stop him. "If you reveal me, they will kill me." I state and Kuai begins to cry. "Please, you have to let me go. You would never have made it. They would have picked you as weak." "But I'm not." "You're mentally weak!" "And you're a girl. You can't do this. I can't let you." "I already have." I realise how distraught he really is. This must feel like he's killing his sister. "Look, I believe I can do this. I'm smart. I'm quick. It's not about strength anymore." "No. Can't I just accept my place?" "No, it doesn't work like that. I have to go, and you can't tell anybody I've gone. Mother and father will have to know, but if a peacekeeper finds out I'm dead. The rest of my hair and dress is hidden over there; you need to get rid of them. Hide the evidence. I can do this Kuai." As I'm explaining, Kuai is staring at me shaking his head. "Please. You can help me by telling me you're okay. You'll be fine. You can never be selected again. You can live comfortably with the money. Dad, mother, you you'll be safe for the rest of your lives." "And what about you?" His voice is strained. I'm struggling not to cry. Being twins, he's been my best friend since before I can remember. "I'll be fine if you will." We hug and he holds me tightly. He hands me something small and cold and presses it into my hand. The peacekeeper storms into the room and I stop hugging Kuai as it seems unmanly. Oh god what am I doing? "Tell mother and father I love them." Kuais eyes widen as I walk away. I think he realised that I was saying goodbye for good. "Time's up." And with that he grabs a part of my armour. He pulls me out the room and I don't look up from the floor until I step onto the train. I can hear a man in the background talking into a camera or something as he sounds like he's presenting. He follows me into the train. There are lots more Capitol reporters out there now. "What's your name? Why are you on the train? Where is FaKuai?" "FaKuai is no longer taking part in the Hunger Games. I have volunteered in his place." I am glad of the fact they no longer keep records of every person eligible for the hunger games. Of course they know everybody who has to have their names entered, but they go automatically onto a computer system in the Capitol which just prints out the names. Otherwise they would know that Fa Ping has never existed. They barricaded me with more questions, but I turn away and head further into the train. The small man is now there as well, along with Li Shang. In the corner is a tall, slim man with red hair and a streak of orange through it. Apart from that he doesn't look like he's from the Capitol at all. He's wearing no make-up and his clothes are a basic shimmering red colour. Unlike the villages, the Capitol wears strange, surreal clothes. The villages are all traditional. "My name is, of course, Chi-Fu. You know that. This man over here is Mushu." "Nice to meet you Mulan." The man's voice is childish and playful despite his appearance. His eyes are big and he has a kind of nervous energy to him. "Mushu is your mentor. He won his games by the use of fire. Perhaps as physically you appear to be quite lacking Ping, you could learn his ways." "Thank you." I say with a hint of anger in my voice. "I'll show you the ropes Ping." Mushu says. "I'm the guardian to the tributes." "And this man is Li Shang, do you two know each other?" Chi-Fu speaks up. "No." We both say quickly and in unison. Shang does not look up from his chair. "Well. Maybe that is for the best. But for the most part of this trip, you two will be learning and possibly even training together. You will meet in this room again in one hour when you are settled. Your rooms are just through that door." Chi-Fu indicates to the door at the end. "Everything you will need, clothes, washing supplies, anything will be in there for you." I leave the room and walk into the first door to the left. I can hear Shang walking to the right, his footsteps loud on the floor of the train. I sit down on the bed and look down to my clenched fist at what my brother gave me. It is my token from my village. It's the locus flower pin my father got from the Capitol after he won his games. He returned to the village a hero and gave it to my mother when he proposed. When Kuai went into his games she gave it to him. I haven't seen it since he came home. I thought he no longer had it. I lye back on the large bed and allow myself to cry again. 


End file.
